Press
NewCo Foundation Secures $5 Million
February 20, 2018
NewCo Foundation, a Ventura County non-profit organization focused on student career education and startup company activities has received a five-million-dollar endowment from its founders, Dave and Dawn Gross. NewCo Foundation started with the RCMakes program at Rancho Campana High School. It is evolving and growing with the addition of a coding bootcamp for students and a seed fund to make program related investments. The endowment will be used to fund ongoing operational programs, support other student career education and startup company programs in the County, and to begin making program related investments in promising startups. Contact Dave Gross RCMAKES General Manager press@rcmakes.com
Community Makerspace Grand Opening at Rancho Campana High School
April 27, 2017
RCMAKES, a student-operated business at Rancho Campana High School, is holding the Grand Opening of the Community Makerspace from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm on Saturday May 13th. There will be food trucks, corn hole, giant tumbling blocks, the RCMAKES store, memberships, activities, guided tours, demonstrations, kid’s crafts and more. The event is at Rancho Campana High School and is open to the public. The RCMAKES Community Makerspace is an 1,800 square-foot collaborative work space at Rancho Campana High School. It is a 21st-century shop equipped with everything from basic hand tools and power tools to a wood lathe, plasma cutter, pottery wheels, 3D printers, a CNC router and a laser cutter/engraver. Supported activities include woodworking, metalworking, welding, 3D printing/prototyping, set design, ceramics, textiles, crafts, electronics, robotics, coding and software app development. Community Makerspace memberships start at $24.95 per month with special life-long “Founding Maker” pricing of $14.95 per month if you join by June 30th. RCMAKES is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation, being an independent student-operated Job Shop and Community Makerspace located on the campus of Rancho Campana High School. It will provide onsite internships, student employment, earned scholarships, equipment, supplies, and new venture incubation. RCMAKES accelerates work-based learning by means of an entrepreneurial apprenticeship model. RCMAKES is operated in partnership with Oxnard Union High School District and the Ventura County Office of Education. For more information, visit www.rcmakes.com.
RCMAKES Engineers $250,000 in Startup Funding
April 18, 2017
RCMAKES, a student-operated business at Rancho Campana High School, is launching with $250,000 in startup funding from engineer, entrepreneur and venture capitalist Dave Gross and his wife, Dawn Gross, Braille Manager at the Alternate Text Production Center. Mr. Gross currently teaches engineering and business classes offered at Rancho Campana through a partnership with the Ventura County Office of Education and Oxnard Union High School District. Mr.Gross will volunteer as general manager of the new venture. “We are providing entrepreneurial experiences in a mentor-apprentice environment with genuine private-sector responsibility, accountability and pride-of-ownership,“ says Gross. “The student-managed Community Makerspace, Retail Store and Job Shop introduce students to local businesses and develop real-world skills. Students experience the latest technologies for engineering, manufacturing and business management.” RCMAKES evolved from two years of collaborative planning and volunteer work at the new academy high school, where project-based learning and work-based learning are integral to the curriculum. All students at the school are encouraged to intern in their senior year. “Applying both academic learning with hands-on technical skills leads to more meaningful internships,” continues Gross. “The students are building a startup company from the ground up. They address all of the diverse aspects of that real-world challenge while simultaneously gaining specific career-path experience.” Roger Adams, Principal at Rancho Campana High, shared, “The addition of an agile, self-funded, independent organization allows spending flexibility and speed of execution that enhances our mission to provide meaningful work-based learning opportunities to our students. RCMAKES is a pathway accelerator that helps prepare for post-secondary study and a career in any field. RCMAKES, a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation, is an independent student-operated Job Shop and Community Makerspace located on the campus of Rancho Campana High School. RCMAKES would provide onsite internships, student employment, earned scholarships, equipment, supplies, and new venture incubation. RCMAKES accelerates work-based learning by means of an entrepreneurial apprenticeship model. RCMAKES is operated in partnership with Oxnard Union High School District and the Ventura County Office of Education. For more information, visit www.rcmakes.com. For more information, cContact Dave Gross, RCMAKES General Manager, at press@rcmakes.com.